Category Archives: Furniture & Interior Accessories

Gong Xi Fa Cai or Gong Hei Fat Choi – it’s Chinese New Year! For many of our readers and for many businesses across the globe this means a holiday and lots of time for food, family and general celebrations. Last year I was living with a Chinese family in Singapore so I got to take part in the fun and learned a lot about their traditions at this time of year. At WIN we are of course still hard at work in the office, however we’ve been in contact with some great designers who have an oriental influence in their products and there’s one in particular that stood out for us. A New Year can symbolise a fresh start in many different ways, so why not a fresh start in the home? New wallpaper in particular can completely transform a room and with an amazing new collection from designer Steve Leung and Graham & Brown there’s no excuse not to start transforming your house.

Steve Leung is a Hong Kong based designer best known for his beautifully designed hotels, restaurants, club houses, show flats and retail spaces. He has also won the Best International Interior Designer Award an unprecedented ten times at the Andrew Martin International Awards. His wallpaper collection for Graham & Brown features seven contemporary designs, inspired by the Orient with a distinct Western influence. The range includes hand-drawn climbing florals, stylised geometrics and classical stripes in a balanced palette of auspicious earthy shades, sultry metallics and cooling neutrals. Delicate glitter embellishments have been added to give the wallpapers a delicate sheen. We’ve chosen some of our favourites for you below.

Juan, Graham & Brown

Juan uses a simple geometric pattern, with charcoal and bronze colours. An enhanced glitter and metallic effect reflects the beauty and simplicity for which Oriental design is renowned. This wallpaper is charming and we think it would look particularly great in entrance halls, workspaces or the bedroom.

Ling, Graham & Brown

Eastern design inspires Ling with its trellis effect, another geometric wallpaper from the collection. The mix of textures and heights within the design give a stunning three dimensional effect and the metallic highlights add a touch of decadence. The beige and green tones blend really well which will add warmth to your home. This is definitely one for the kitchen or dining room!

Jiao, Graham & Brown

Jiao is a beautiful floral wallpaper. The background is light blue with a white floral design that has shimmering highlights, producing a three dimensional effect on the flowers. It coordinates with some of the plainer wallpapers in the collection and so could be combined, perhaps using Jiao on one feature wall for maximum impact.

Bao, Graham & Brown

Finally there is Bao. This elegant geometric design is inspired by screens from the Orient, combining the traditional with the contemporary. Its clever use of tones and heights give a sophisticated three dimensional effect and again it uses metallic highlights. This wallpaper gives a particular air of elegance and decadence and works well with minimal furnishings and colour schemes of red, black and white.

There are many more designs in the collection and we’re certainly feeling inspired, looks like a weekend of planning my new bedroom! We hope the New Year brings lots of luck for everyone, especially those entering our WIN Awards 2014! For those of you celebrating, we hope you have an amazing time and to everyone else have a wonderful weekend. Until next time!

With a unique twist on fashion, function and sustainability, Design Studio Bernotat&Co have created a collection of clothing for chairs, asking: Why buy a new chair when you can dress up the one you have? Having already begun dressing up chairs with their Triennal design for Gispen, the Studio realised they could look at upholstery as a completely separate item – the upholstery becomes the chair’s clothing. This clothing gives new life to chairs, restyling them for a completely different look. Cleverly, it also has the possibility to add comfort to hard wooden chairs or allow for simple chairs to have more purpose and functionality which is especially handy for workspace environments.

Photo Credit Marleen Sleeuwits and Rogier Chang

Several textiles were custom-made in cooperation with the Audax Textiel Museum in Tilburg which resulted in technical and functional innovations, such as three-dimensional knits. Others are found materials, used for an entirely different purpose than originally intended. The team began with an initial ‘Haute Couture collection’ before creating the ‘Prêt-à-Porter models’ which we’re going to have a look at below.

Pique-Pocket, Photo Credit Marleen Sleeuwits and Rogier Chang

Firstly, the Pique-Pocket. This model carries household as well as fashion connotations: the structure of the fabric and the detailing are reminiscent of an oven mitten or an apron, but at the same time it has a dainty colour and a waist-like fitting. The two pockets in the back provide an ideal place to store clutter such as phones or books, a great addition to a dining or reception chair – I’d love one at my desk at home personally!

Knit-Net, Photo Credit Marleen Sleeuwits and Rogier Chang

Secondly, the Knit-Net. The protective foam net packaging of expensive apples served as inspiration for this design, which adds comfort to a hard chair and is made of specially developed 3D knitwear. Essentially, it’s a chair cushion, but in a very different shape and technique. Also, thanks to the netted structure in combination with four press studs, Knit Net folds itself beautifully on any regular dining or reception chair, independent on the position of the legs.

Hoodini, Photo Credit Marleen Sleeuwits and Rogier Chang

Next we see Hoodini. This design was created with a knitted textile and looks a bit like a Chesterfield sofa, but also like granny’s dressing gown. The cover is truly multifunctional: useful as baggy storage space when hanging over the back of the chair and as a privacy screen when pulled over the sitter’s head like a hood. Absolutely perfect for hiding and having a private moment in a shared office – we all need that sometimes! – or in a busy household, away from the family for a brief second.

Big Baggy, Photo Credit Marleen Sleeuwits and Rogier Chang

Finally there is Big Baggy. Being Pique-Pocket’s big brother, Big Baggy takes the idea of pockets for chairs to a professional level: he has pockets for anything a nomadic worker might need. The back has two big pockets for newspapers and magazines, the left side is for electronic media: iPad, iPhone and a practical hanging loop for headphones. The left side has pen loops, a pocket for a ruler and two pockets for those other small bits that are usually scattered on your desk. The compact office redefined and a brilliant idea for freelance workers!

From looking at each model individually, it can be seen that they are more than just chair covers and also more than storage creators; they are ambiguous objects with various sources of inspiration and us such are open to associations and even personalities. Being slightly strange, some of them maybe even awkward, they trigger emotional reactions. People relate differently to the chairs when they’re dressed-up, and the chairs suddenly acquire a certain anthropomorphic quality. Funnily enough, the Dutch word for upholstery is ‘bekleding’ – its root including the word ‘clothing’, creating a direct relation to the human body.

Photo Credit Marleen Sleeuwits and Rogier Chang

Here at WIN we love them all, both individually and as a family, and excitingly Bernotat&Co are already working on new models! We can’t wait to see what quirky covers are to come and I’m sure you can’t either – watch this space.

Ten days on from the inaugural World Interiors News Annual Awards ceremony and dinner the winning designers are still basking in the glory of their successes. London’s Saatchi Gallery played host to the most distinguished figures in architecture and interior design, treating the attendees to an opportunity to view the latest exhibition entitled “Body Language” which explores the physicalities of human beings through photography, sculpture and painting.

Escaping the cold November night outside, over 300 guests from across the globe retreated into the gallery’s warmth for a cocktail reception, a 3-course meal and some all-important networking opportunities. Amongst the many well-known faces was judge and interior design guru Sir Terence Conran, who has been a keen supporter of the awards programme.

As petit-fours and coffee were served, the awards ceremony began with a speech from Annalisa Hammond, Editor of World Interiors News, welcoming the guests and introducing Art historian and BBC Culture Show host Andrew Graham-Dixon who proceeded to present the awards for the winning designs.

Whilst the shortlisted entries from each category were announced and the winners collected their trophies on stage, guests from all areas of architecture and interior design were reminded of the designs which have helped shape the material and cultural landscape over the past year.

When the ceremony came to a close, the elated winners and shortlisted designers were photographed with their trophies and certificates, and the champagne flowed as celebrations began.

After overwhelmingly positive feedback about the event, Annalisa Hammond reflects that “the intimacy and originality of the venue appealed to our sponsors and guests, many of whom have already enquired about next year’s event!”

With the 2014 Awards due to open in early January, it promises to be another exciting year ahead for World Interiors News.

Congratulations to iMakr – talented sponsors of the World Interiors News Annual Awards – for their feature article in The Guardian today. Using their expertise in 3D art, they have custom-designed an innovative trophy which will be awarded to the winning designers at our Awards Dinner on the 28th November at Saatchi Gallery, London.

Could iQ Shoreditch be the future of student accommodation? Showcasing a pioneering design, this unique residential project offers students a living space like no other academic housing in the capital. “We are setting a new baseline for quality student accommodation within central London,” said developer James Crow of Quintain.

Designed by author and television presenter Naomi Cleaver, the project exhibits details which are creative and forward-thinking, giving the halls of residence a distinct edge over its counterparts. “My strategy was to reflect the famously vibrant character of Shoreditch – already a mecca for young people – as well as creating a comforting sense of home for a diverse community of students from across the world,” said Cleaver. “Student accommodation is as much an expression of home as anywhere else but much of the student accommodation I had researched looked corporate to me. While security and efficiency are important, so is nurture and play.”

Drawing on the context of the surrounding urban environment was a key aspect of this creation; young artists and designers were commissioned to realise the design concept, which aimed to represent the “visual anarchy” found in the locality, to reflect Tonkin Liu’s local pavementscape and to appeal to a broad spectrum of students.

In addition to individual bedrooms, iQ Shoreditch features 24 quirky common rooms and public spaces, each demonstrating imaginative, innovative design. From the stuffed deer in The Conservatory to the iconic film posters in the TV lounges, the varied designs reflect the youthful, artistic vibrancy synonymous with the area. In the reception area circular leather seating surrounds a large tree, which acts as an unusual feature and compliments the motifs in the adjacent courtyard, designed by architect Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands. In The Sky Lounge, an installation of copper rods spans the ceiling, mapping and identifying the stars, whilst string art forms a 24-hour time-lapse depiction of London’s flight path.

To encompass the varying practical needs of the students, Cleaver’s design extends beyond conventional study rooms to include a music practice room and an art room, where pinboards line the walls and large tables provide a crucial workspace for art, fashion and design students.

Placing high importance on local manufacture and resourcefulness, Cleaver used reclaimed chairs and desks adorned with ripe graffiti to furnish study rooms, and papered their walls with misprinted sheets of Shakespearean plays.

For students living their academic lives against the backdrop of this ambitious design project, their visual landscape is multifaceted. To wander through the rooms of iQ Shoreditch is to experience the many faces of the accommodation; in one room the colour tones, furnishings and features cultivate a homely, welcoming feel whilst the contemporary lighting, interior accessories and wall art in another exude as much edgy character as the borough of Shoreditch itself.

Moroccan Bazaar is a leading supplier and manufacturer of exquisite Moroccan interiors, a family business spanning three generations dating back to 1946. Today, the company, which initially started out as a wholesale supplier, has evolved into a well known and trusted name in the manufacture and distribution of home and contract furnishings. A range of over 3000 products can be viewed and are available to purchase at its West London showroom as well as Moroccan Bazaar’s stylish online website.

Over the years Moroccan Bazaar’s products have been used throughout the world, catering to the retail and events industries as well as in luxury hotels and private residences. It has also supplied production companies for well known film and television shows and home improvement programmes. Moroccan Bazaar work tirelessly to provide high quality authentic furnishings, this ranges from intricate fine lighting through to beautiful furniture collections made from many different materials, all produced in its own workshops in Morocco.

Quality is the company’s key principle; its approach in conducting its business with honesty and integrity is adopted by its talented craftsmen who ultimately form the foundation of the partnership. A network of over 1000 craftsmen who work exclusively with the family ensures a constantly evolving product range which is high in quality and consistency.

The company prides itself on its comprehensive traditional range, as well as collections which are more suited to a contemporary living space, where a touch of something exciting and different is desired. For inspiration, the projects gallery offers an insight into a handful of completed Moroccan interior design projects the company have undertaken and browse through the online catalogue for their range of Moroccan Decor.

Some of Moroccan Bazaar’s beautiful products will be illuminating the Saatchi Gallery on 28 November as World Interiors News reveal the winners of this year’s interior design awards. To see who is coming or to get involved, visit www.worldinteriorsnews.com or contact Naomi for more information.

Antonio Aricò’s new collection ‘Still Alive’ deals with the artistic and timeless theme of the ‘Still Life’. For this collection, specially designed for Seletti, Antonio wanted to play with inanimate objects and natural shapes usually put together by famous and amateur painters.

‘Still Alive’, a ‘practical and organized piece of art’, comes from Stefano Seletti’s desire to work on wooden boxes that can be used for storage. Antonio decided to use a “graceful detournement” and he wonderfully moved objects from one context to another by simply transforming common products and their uses to create new stories and feelings – always referring to pure and simple emotions.

The result? An arrangement and combination of elements that you can use and play with. By juxtaposing their various shapes and shadows, the user receives a daily invitation to discover and explore them in a creative way. The design set includes a tall wooden pitcher, which can be used to
hold rulers or scissors, a wooden vase which is divided into three parts for storing items like tacks and paperclips, a practical cup made of brass which can be used as a pen holder, a wooden pencil box to hide your precious, favourite pens, a porcelain bottle which can be seen as a simple mono vase to put a smiling flower in, a wooden pyramid-shaped box in emerald green with a retro “radica” effect to put your personal treasures in, and a magical magnifying glass sphere to help you read the passionate letters of your lover.

All of these elements are highly functional, so ‘Still Alive’ will become part of your daily routine – ready to be used at your desk or living room table. Sensorial, tactile, and dynamic, every piece has its own carved-out place on a polygonal wooden base and you’ll have the freedom and pleasure to move them around, tidying up or playing with all of their functions and materials.

Already featured in Seletti’s catalogue, ‘Still Alive’ will be presented for the first time in Maison et Objet from the 24 – 28 January.

Handmade in Britain returns to Chelsea Old Town Hall this November for the seventh edition of The Contemporary Crafts & Design Fair.

Experience a rich variety of contemporary craft and design in fashion and interiors from
disciplines including ceramics, jewellery, glass, textiles, wood, metalwork and furniture, all under
one roof on the King’s Road, London.

This year, Handmade in Britain highlights the exceptional talent of 5 emerging makers in their New Graduate Showcase – a dedicated gallery celebrating the next generation of innovative design and dedicated craftsmanship, featuring makers in glass, textiles, jewellery, ceramics and interior accessories. Each selected maker graduated in his or her discipline in 2012 or 2013.

The New Graduate Showcase 2013 features:

PETER KUCERIKGlass + Lighting

Peter’s collection of glass lighting features sculptural pieces which respond to both nature and digital technology – inspired by the crystalline geometry in nature and modern architectural design.

Anna Byers’ bold, geometric jewellery is inspired by the architecture of temples, mosques and cathedrals. Anna’s ‘Interactive’ collection features multi-layered pieces that can be rotated and rearranged, inviting the wearer to create their own unique compositions.

Felix has created a series of hyper-functional and partially dysfunctional objects which stretch the
conventions of materials – the series includes ceramic speakers, concrete cups and plywood salad tongs.

Retelling a story of design and creation that began over 2,000 years ago, the third edition of Design Exquis is now open at the Roca London Gallery, offering an intriguing twist on the original idea.

Design Exquis is a series of exhibitions inspired by the collective method of creation, developed by the Surrealists.Roca London gallery have announced the last designer of this creative chain as music composer Nick Phillips brings the story to an end.

Taking the debate about design to a whole new level for 2013, and exploring sound as design, the exhibition’s curators, Florian Dussopt and Géraldine Vessière, asked Nick to be the final designer in the process, which involves five designers responding in turn to an object created by their predecessor.

Through his creation, Metamorphosis, Nick transforms marble into sound. For this, he used a technical method to convert the grain and colour of the material into sound patterns, which became a sonic template to build his sound from. He then continued to draw visual inspiration from the marble to take the composition further. Played through headphones and also out loud in the gallery, the music accompanies visitors on their Design Exquis journey.

Object 6 – Sound Image

The first time that sound has been presented as one of the objects in the process, Metamorphosis is Nick’s response to object number five, Reflections by Lex Pott. Inspired by the book matching technique used in the wood and stone industry by which a solid block of stone is cut in two to open like a book to create a mirrored pattern, Lex created a marble room divider and a series of six shelves. The various organic patterns of the marble combined with very strong geometric shapes provide a contrast between the natural organic material and the geometrical industrial forms. For the shelves, Lex replaced the second part of the stone with a mirror to create an artificially accurate reflection. Thanks to the imaginary space created by the mirror, the object becomes complete.

Object 5 – Reflections

Lex’s book matching technique was inspired by the angular shape of Mountain Light, the fourth object in the chain, which reminded him of an open book.Mountain Light, by Studio Swine, is a desk light embedded in rock and elevated on brass legs to give an architectural feel. Warm LED lights are used to bring a summer ambience to the interior all year round. Exploring the integration of modernist architecture with nature through luxury interiors and glass facades, the designers used a new faux marble technique, with concrete as the principal material.

Object 4 – Mountain Light

This idea of utopia and the synthesis of the natural and the constructed was inspired by object three in the Design Exquis process, Summer Bowls. For Studio Swine this raised questions about the construction of paradise, the feeling of holidays and playful modernist architecture in the land of the endless summer – particularly Palm Springs and Los Angeles.

Object 3 – Summer Bowls

Summer Bowls is a group of containers inspired by the colours and tastes of ice cream. Created by design studio 45 Kilo, the bowls are handmade using a traditional metal spinner, which leaves traces of the wooden mould on the metal. Colour-anodized aluminium surfaces, more commonly associated with digital devices, and Corian tops give the bowls a contemporary feel.

What better use for the Summer Bowls but for the serving of ice cream? How useful then that the preceding object in the process, design number two, is an ice cream maker. Italian food designer Jacopo Sarzi was inspired by the ancient technique of ice cream making, after spotting similarities between this and the traditional method of soap making.

Object 2 – Ice Cream Maker

Making soap requires a combination of greasy and alkaline ingredients at a temperature of 45°C and involves intense blending, known as saponification. Producing ice cream also entails a blending process, a greasy ingredient and requires constant stirring but in this case, the temperature must be -21°C. Jacopo’s ice cream maker is made out of cork, a natural and food safe material. The connection? A bar of soap, the object which begins Design Exquis: the Roca edition.

Assemblyroom have designed The Hatton Range launching at designjunction 2013. The range comprises of a fully upholstered arm chair and a 2-seater sofa in either solid colour or a bold two tone colour variation.

With its clean lines and its comfortable seat, the Hatton chair has a welcoming form and plenty of personality. Constructed using an FSC timber frame and covered with graded CMHR foam the Hatton Range is suited to reception areas, informal meeting spaces, hotels and bars.

Hatton Sofa

Hatton Sofa & Hyde Stool

The Hyde Bench

Following on from the successful Hyde series of Stacking Stools, The Hyde bench is a fully upholstered stacking bench seat suitable for breakout spaces, reception areas, educational environments and informal meeting areas.

Hyde Bench & Hyde Stools

Using modern technology and manufacturing techniques the Hyde Bench is a frameless piece that has been moulded using PU CMHR foam, making it comfortable, lightweight and easy to handle. With its ability to stack away, the Hyde Bench is an innovative and practical design that responds to the flexible nature of today’s environments. Use it for work, use it for play, use it to meet, in fact use it just about anywhere!

Hyde Bench Stack

Available in two lengths and a wide range of colours, the Hyde Bench can be upholstered in either a solid or a two tone colour combination providing a playful looking bench for any environment.

The Hyde Stool Upholstered in Bailey Hills Fabric

Assemblyroom are also delighted to launch the Special Edition Hyde Stacking Stool, upholstered in a fabulous new digitally printed wool fabric from Bailey Hills.The playful looking stool adds interest and vibrancy to any interior, both when in use and when stacked away as a totem.

Hyde Stool in Bailey Hills fabric

The Hyde stool is ideal for informal meeting spaces, break out areas, hotels, bars, museums and schools… in fact anywhere where an informal and fun looking seat is required! The Hyde Stool has been moulded using a PU CMHR foam making it a comfortable, light weight stool that is easy to handle. This coupled with its ability to stack 4 high, makes The Hyde Stool a versatile seat for flexible spaces.

Hyde Hatton & Burgess

Both the Hatton & Hyde ranges will be available to view at this year’s designjunction at The Sorting Office, 21-31 New Oxford Street from 18th – 22nd September. Assemblyroom will be located next to the Camden Town Brewery bar on the second floor.

Assemblyroom Furniture was established in 2010 by Peter and Cathy Wall to complement their award winning Commercial Interior Design practice that launched in 2003. Informed and inspired by their commercial interior design experience, the studio create quality pieces which are comfortable, refined and built to last. All of Assemblyroom’s furniture is manufactured employing the best of British craftsmanship and using the highest quality materials that have been carefully selected for their function, aesthetics and durability.